The men and women of Milton who served with valour in the Great War (1914-1919); the Second World War (1939-1945) and the Korean Conflict (1950-1953) are commemorated on a number of “Rolls of Service” (served in the armed forces from the area) and “Rolls of Honour” (paid the ultimate sacrifice for their service). These rolls are located in community churches, halls, museums and offices throughout Halton Region. The rolls vary from bronze plaques, to brass plates, framed paper and stained glass windows.

Those that paid the ultimate sacrifice in these conflicts are also recorded on the primary “Stone Memorials”, such as those found in Haltonville and Victoria Park. The Legion Cairn in Evergreen Cemetery also records many of those that served in these conflicts, survived the wars but are now deceased.

Note: We have recently uncovered an error in the Legion Cairn, as the cairn was constructed to honour the comrades (members) of the Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 136 that are buried in Evergreen Cemetery. It appears that over time many comrades who meet this criteria, as well as serving in the armed forces, are not recorded on the cairn. Other names of those who served in the Second World War but who do not meet the cairn criteria, are named on the memorial. The Legion is currently investigating steps to be taken to rectify these errors.

During the process of researching the men and women of Milton that served, a number of the memorials were revisited to obtain an up-to-date list of names. All names were checked against the records of war casualties maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and Canada’s Virtual War Memorial. Any corrections of additions to the paper or stone records were submitted to the National Inventory of Canadian Military Memorials (NICMM), an on-line data base produced by Canada’s Department of Defence. The summary table that follows contains a complete record of the NICMM submissions and the posted results (when they are made available on-line). For the NICMM local page, click here for Milton Memorials on NICMM.

As there have been a number of requests for information on the original records posted primarily in the local churches, as well as corrections to these lists, we are providing a compilation of these records on this web site. We have visited the sites of many (but not all) of the honour rolls as part of the update process, so there is work still to be completed. A number of the sites were previously visited and photographed, however the advancement of digital photography has significantly enhanced the process of photographing and recording the information. When the update surveys and photographs are completed, they are posted here and the old records are removed.

The tables below show the most current information for the memorial records. Please note the following:

it takes some time from the completion and submission of the updated survey and photographs for them to appear on the NICMM web site (we are currently working with NICMM to resolve this problem and have all Milton sites updated in the near future – we have received a reply that there will be considerable delay in the process and at best the site is updated only twice a year);

the survey documents are large files in PDF format and should only be downloaded if you are using a high-speed internet connection (or better);

original surveys (I assume from Ed Goodall) are provided where an updated survey has yet to be completed;

there are a number of errors on the various memorials, so please check the link in Column 5 for the MHS Update, or see the note below;

St. Paul’s United and Knox Presbyterian updates can not be completed until the restoration work has been finished; and

there may be additional rolls or memorials in churches that have not yet been identified (i.e. Omagh Church of Christ), in private commercial buildings (i.e. P. L. Robertson; St. CLair Lodge No. 135), or those yet unearthed from the archives (i.e. Halton Region Museum).

Additional information is available from the MHS Records on the specifics of each memorial, particularly where a check of the names noted one or more significant errors (name spelled wrong, wrong name, no record of that person, etc.). If you wish a copy of that information, please send an e-mail to miltonsoldiers@gmail.com and we will provide the details. Please first check the material in the 6th column (Update Posted) as some information is provided those files.

The top row of the table indicates what information will appear if you click that highlighted link. Please note that many of the pages linked to the NICMM Code have more than one page, so please look on each page for the comment link “More Photos”.

TABLE 1: Primary Memorials

During the 2011-2012 survey period we became aware of other facilities that are potential candidates for one or more military memorial. We would appreciate hearing from others that have knowledge of businesses, churches, schools or other institutions that may have memorial plaques or rolls.

TABLE 2: Secondary Memorials

In the final stages of the recording process we have developed a MASTER LIST of the men and women of Milton that have served, for each of the two world wars. The master list for the Great War was created during the research for the Gold Watch Project and the Second World War list was created during the development of the WWII component of this web site. Lists for those who served in Korea and other “Peace Keeping” or “United Nations” missions will follow. The most current version of this master list is available at these links:

First World War

PDF version

EXCEL version

Second World War and Korean Conflict

PDF Version

EXCEL version

Copies of these lists are in circulation at the MHS Archives and the Royal Canadian Legion so that others can check the lists and make additions, corrections or suggestions. If you have downloaded the list and have any comments, please e-mail them to miltonsoldiers@gmail.com or send them with the Milton Historical Society.

Technically, the last war was the Second World War as that is the last time that war was declared by an Act of Parliament. There is a long list of Peace Keeping and/or Humanitarian Missions, which will surprise most readers, at the site of the Department of Defence (Directorate of History & Heritage).